


you must like me for me

by eliwhitneyinventedthecottongin



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: 404 Kylo Ren not found, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Feel-good, Meet-Cute, New York City, No Kylo Ren, Rating May Change, Romantic Comedy, Romantic Fluff, Soft Ben Solo, walk of shame meet cute
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-25
Updated: 2020-04-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:29:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23834644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eliwhitneyinventedthecottongin/pseuds/eliwhitneyinventedthecottongin
Summary: Rey's just trying to make it to the nearest subway station in a snowstorm after a one night stand following Finn's birthday party. What starts as the most pitiful walk of shame ever ends with one Ben Solo coming to her aid in the weirdest, most unexpected meet-cute.This is a love story.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Kudos: 28





	you must like me for me

**Author's Note:**

> I saw this AU prompt somewhere on twitter or wherever and it's been hanging around in the back of my mind until now.

Rey shivered. It was half past 8 in the morning and the sidewalk was coated in a fair amount of snow that had fallen overnight. It was now in the middle of turning to slush, thanks to the pedestrian traffic. Rey didn’t mind snow. What she did mind, was the fact that she now had to navigate to the closest subway station during a snowstorm while wearing last night’s slinky black dress and heels. She had been at a birthday party for her friend Finn, at a trendy bar in Chelsea. 

She hadn’t been planning on going home with anyone, honestly. It just happened. The stranger had bright eyes and a nice smile, so going home with him was easy enough. She didn’t even know if he knew Finn, but she guessed it didn't matter. 

She took her first tentative step once she left her nice smile guy’s apartment building - and very briefly considered just hailing a cab, until she remembered it was Sunday morning and the fare would be an abomination. And, she only had a crumpled $10 bill and her metrocard on her anyways. 

_ You’ve made your bed, Rey,  _ she told herself. It was only two blocks to the subway station. She could make it. 

She was walking a bit silly, trying to shuffle in heels, and concentrating very hard on keeping her balance _. Slow and steady, _ she told herself. She was grateful for her coat, but unfortunately her bare legs were suffering from the assault of the wind. To make matters worse, she also wasn’t wearing any underwear. Come morning, she hadn’t been able to find her underwear in nice smile guy's apartment, and decided to cut her losses and leave before he had a chance to wake up. Let him have a little souvenir. 

She picked up the pace a little, ushered on by the fact that her legs were fucking freezing and that the faster she walked, the sooner she could get into a warm, cramped, subway. And, the fact that she was in the middle of crossing the street when the ‘Don’t Walk’ light started ticking down. 

That’s where Rey made her first mistake. Just as she stepped back onto the sidewalk, three things happened in quick succession. First, she slipped. Second, as she slipped, she felt the heel of her left shoe snap off. Third, she fell right on her ass onto the now slushy sidewalk. 

She just sat there for a few moments, in utter disbelief. 

_ It’s fine. This is fine. I goddamn hate my life.  _

Just as she had mustered the nerve to attempt to get back on her feet, a large, black gloved hand came out of nowhere, extending itself out to her. 

“Are you alright?” The deep voice attached to the hand asked. 

She looked up. 

_ What the fuck?  _

The man extending his hand out to her was exceptionally handsome. He was ridiculously tall, evident in the fact that Rey really needed to crane her head up to meet his eyes. His eyes, which were warm and brown. His pale face was dotted with moles, and his lips were full and lush. To make matters worse, his handsome face was framed by beautiful, dark hair that fell in gentle waves. 

_ You have got to be kidding me.  _

Rey then became aware that not only had she been staring for a few seconds, like an idiot, while his hand was extended - her stupid, idiot mouth was hanging open.

_ Get your goddamn shit together, you wanker.  _

“Uh - um - yeah, I’m okay, thanks,” She said, and continued to stare for a few seconds before she connected the dots and took his outstretched hand. It was warm, even through the glove. And big. And strong.

As the man helped pull her up, she had to awkwardly maneuver her legs and dress so as to not flash him her lady bits. That would really be the cherry on top of the cake of this entirely fucked up morning.

Now standing, her head only came up to about his chest.  _ Jesus Christ.  _ She then noticed now how nicely he was dressed, all in expensive looking black. Black gloves, black pants, black shoes, immaculate black coat. 

_ Awesome. Great.  _

He looked down at her, his expression open. 

“Thank you,” She said again, self consciously looking down at her rumpled dress & coat, trying to brush herself off.  _ Jesus Christ, I need to get out of here before I humiliate myself further.  _

“I appreciate it,” she said after a short pause, in which he did not attempt to put distance between them, but rather just kept looking at her. 

“Have a nice day,” she continued, turning away from the most handsome stranger she’d ever seen in her entire life so she could pitifully limp towards the subway. 

“Wait,” his voice called out. Immediately, she stopped in her tracks, and turned back around to face him. 

“It’s the middle of a snowstorm, you’ve broken the heel of your already unsuitable shoes, and you’re covered in slush.” His voice was kind, and sincere. Even a little teasing. 

“Yes, I’m having an absolutely lovely morning.” She replied, still standing there. 

“Can I call you an Uber?” He asked, his phone in his hand. 

“Oh um - thank you, but that’s alright. The station is only about two blocks away.” 

“Where are you headed?” 

“Um, Greenwich Village.” 

“What a coincidence. I’m headed to Tribeca, so you’re on the way. I was going to take the subway, but please, let me call us a cab.” 

She considered him for a moment, squinting a little. 

“Are you from around here? I’ve never once met another New Yorker prone to random acts of kindness.” 

He smiled. “Well, my mother didn’t raise me to leave girls to trek home with broken shoes. During a snowstorm. Interesting footwear of choice.” He smirked now, just the hint of it tugging the corner of his mouth up. 

“It was uh, a friend’s birthday party,” she replied sheepishly, unconsciously adjusting her hair. “I’m sure I make quite the memorable damsel in distress.”

He let out a chuckle, and pulled his phone out, tapping at the screen. 

“Jerry will be here in four minutes in a 2017 black Ford Escalade.”

“I hope you know what a Ford Escalade looks like, because I sure don’t.” 

He let out another laugh. “Yeah, I have us covered.”

His eyes met hers again, and Rey noted how nice his laugh sounded. 

“I’m Ben, by the way,” he added, extending his hand to her for the second time.

She firmly took it, remembering what her adoptive mother Maz had said about shaking hands - that no one respected a floppy fish handshake. 

“I’m Rey.” She said, looking directly into his eyes. 

“It’s nice to meet you, Rey.” He replied, not breaking eye contact.

_ Holy fuck. He said my name. _

Rey loved hearing him say her name. She wanted him to say it again. 

_ Rey. You’ve literally just met him. While in the middle of a walk of shame.  _

“It’s nice to meet you too, Ben.” 

Was she making up the way he smiled when she said his name in return? 

_ Rey. Stop. You’re not wearing knickers and you’ve only just slept with another man. You cannot flirt with this stranger.  _ She thought. 

_Ugh, but why not?_ _I can do what I want._

It was safe to say that 90% of Rey’s internal monologue was arguing with herself. 

“So, ah, what do you do, Rey?” He asked her. 

_ Fuck me. This guy’s small talk isn’t even awkward. His voice is so sexy.  _

_ Oh my God. STOP!  _

“I um, I do a couple of things. I teach mixed martial arts and yoga. A few spin classes here and there.” She manages to answer. 

“Wow. It sounds like you keep busy.” He replies.

_ Does he look impressed, or am I making that up too? _

“Yeah, it’s fun. The little kids are my favorite. What do you do?”

“I work in law.” 

_ Of fucking course he does. Of course he's a lawyer. Okay. Okay. Play it cool.  _

“Do you have a speciality?” She asked, trying to sound casual. 

“Until recently I was a divorce lawyer, but it just got to be too miserable - you can only witness two people who once used to be happy rip each other to shreds over things like who gets to keep the KitchenAid and who gets the nice china until it starts to wear on you. Now I do international law.”

“Good for you,” she replied. 

_ Who are you, Alex Trebek? _

“That’s nice then,” she hastily added on. “That you do something you like.” 

“Yeah, it’s better.” 

Just in time, Ben turned as the sight of a black SUV came into view, pulling up alongside them. 

_ Oh my god. Oh my god REY what if this is just some sort of human trafficking scam and this really isn’t an Uber? Oh my god.  _

Panic set in. How could she have been so stupid? Frantically, she searched for an Uber sticker on the car’s windshield, and quickly saw it. But that didn’t mean anything. Anyone can have an Uber sticker. 

Ben opened up the passenger door. 

“Who are you picking up?” He asked the driver. 

“A Ben.” The driver was a jovial looking older man. 

“That’s me.” He opened the door wider for Rey. “Ladies first.” 

_ That’s the safe way when you get an Uber, right? To make them say your name?  _

Rey still hesitated. 

“How do I know you’re not some kind of sex trafficker, in league with Uber drivers?” 

_ Oh my god. You actually said that out loud.  _

Ben let out a laugh - and immediately apologized, running his hand through his hair. 

“Rey - I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh - here, I’ll let you see my phone.” 

He held it out, and she saw the two stops on the app - one was the address she gave him - two buildings down from her actual building, she was smart enough at least not to give him her real address, and the second was an address in Tribeca. 

“Would you like to take a picture of my driver’s license?” He asked, a little teasingly. 

“No, it’s fine,” she replied, feeling stupid. “I will remind you though, that I do know multiple forms of martial arts and could easily dislocate both your shoulders. Or break a few bones. Or choke you out." 

_Oh my god, calm down crazy!_

Luckily, Ben found all of the above more endearing rather than truly threatening. “Oh, I believe you.” He said, smiling again. 

Rey got in the car, and the driver cheerily smiled at her. He looked like a simple man who couldn’t hurt a fly, and as he asked them how they were doing his Midwestern accent was very easy to place. There was a photo on his dashboard of what she assumed was his wife and daughters, all who were exceptionally beautiful. His wife looked like Cindy Crawford. 

Merging back into traffic, they got a few honks and a few fingers. 

“Aw jeez,” Jerry said, looking over his shoulder. 

Ben and Rey fell into companionable silence. Ben was the first to break it. 

“Your accent - um -” It was his turn to look sheepish now, which satisfied her in some way. " What part of Britain are you from?’ He asked.

“I was born in London," Rey answered. "But I’ve actually been living here for a little over ten years.” 

“Oh, that’s nice. Did you come over with your family?”

Rey couldn’t help but fidget uncomfortably in her seat the moment he said ‘family’. 

“Um - actually -” she started, trying to find the words to explain her complicated upbringing. 

“I’m sorry if that was too personal,” he interrupted. “I’m also sorry if it sounds like I’m interrogating you.” He said, laughing a bit uneasily. “I just can't help but find you interesting." 

Her brain short circuited.  _ What the ever loving fuck is happening? What timeline is this? He thinks I’m interesting? I’m wearing last night’s makeup and no panties. That’s sad, not interesting.  _

“No - it’s alright, you’re fine -” she said, caught off guard once more as she looked at him to answer.  _ Damn those dark eyes.  _

_ Okay Rey. Answer the question without divulging every single one of your issues. Don’t be an oversharer.  _

“It’s just I was adopted when I was a teenager - by my foster mother - and then we moved here.” 

“I’m sorry,” Ben said, and quickly began again. “I mean - not sorry that you were adopted just sorry that -”

Now it was Rey’s turn to interrupt.  “It’s okay,” she said, laughing a little, trying to ease the tension. “I know what you meant.” 

“Good, that makes me feel better. I’d hate to make an ass out of myself.” 

“You’re fine,” she said again, still looking at him. Was he getting her double entendre? Or was he getting it and entirely uninterested? 

_ He said he thinks you’re interesting.  _

_ He could be just saying that.  _

Rey forced the internal argument out of her mind, and tried to reroute their conversation. 

‘How about you - have you always lived here?”

“No, actually, I grew up in San Francisco. I moved here for law school, so it’s been about ten years for me, too.”

“We’re quite a ways away from San Francisco.” She said. 

Ben laughed. “Yes, we are. My parents and I - we - I just needed some time on my own. I love them - we’re just different.” 

“You can’t get any farther away than New York.” 

“No, I guess you can’t,” he said, a small grin on his face. 

They fell in companionable silence again, and Rey was pleased how it didn’t feel unbearably awkward. 

Rey glanced at the map pulled up on Jerry's phone, and noticed they were very close to her drop off point. 

_ Say something. Don't fuck it up.  _

“I just wanted to thank you again,” Rey said, trying to sound casual. “That would have been a very miserable two blocks to the subway station, and an even worse ride,” she said, a smile creeping into her voice. She moved for her clutch. “Can I just give you some -” 

Immediately his gloved hand closed over hers, and her stomach dropped at the contact. God, she wished he wasn’t wearing those damn gloves. She wanted to know what his hands really felt like. 

“No, you can’t.” He said. 

“Just -”

“No,” he said, his voice still friendly yet firm. Now he was the one shifting in his seat.

“Can I ask you for your number?” He continued, somehow sounding _shy_. 

Rey’s ears started ringing. 

_ What the fuck? _

Sounds were forced out of her mouth with no finesse or planning. 

“I - um -er - uh -”

_ Fucking say something, you idiot.  _ She took a deep breath. 

“I could not have more clearly been on the most pitiful walk of shame ever and you  _ want my number?”  _

Ben looked as if she was asking him a very obvious question. 

“I think this is what they would call a ‘meet-cute’.” Ben said, smiling. “So yes, I’d like to see you again. I just hope you’re more interested in seeing me again than whatever guy you saw last night.” 

Rey couldn’t help but blush, and cover her face in embarrassment. 

“Trust me,” she said. “You certainly have him beat. Give me your phone.” 

He handed his phone to her, and she typed in her name and number. 

_ Rey, _ she entered.  _ Damsel in Distress.  _

With impeccable timing, the car rolled up on Rey’s street. 

“This is me,” she said, turning to him as she reached for the door handle. 

_ Oh my god. What do I do? Do I shake his hand? No, that’s supremely awkward. Do I hug him? Is that too personal? Yes. Okay. Just gotta play it cool. I’ll wave. That’s chill, right?  _

“Although I’m down a pair of heels and my bum is soaked - I really enjoyed our ‘meet-cute’, Ben,” she said, looking into his eyes again. 

“So did I.” He replied. Rey loved how she could hear the smile in his voice. 

“Bye, Ben,” she said, finally pushing the car door open and stepping out. She turned back to him before shutting the door, her hand uplifted in a wave. 

“Bye, Rey,” He said back, and she could tell that he continued to look at her even as she shut the door and as they drove off towards Tribeca. 

_ “What the fuck? _ ” Rey said out loud. 

⧫ ⧫ ⧫

**Author's Note:**

> pls tell me if you understand who jerry the uber driver was and if you got the alex trebek joke
> 
> i'm on reylo twitter @lightofloved


End file.
